Government action to stimulate shale gas investment

This was published under the 2010 to 2015 Conservative and Liberal Democrat coalition government

Chancellor of the Exchequer has announced the Government will develop a targeted tax regime for the shale gas industry.

The Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Right Honourable George Osborne MP has today announced that the Government will engage with industry to develop a targeted tax regime for the shale gas industry.

The Government has said that gas will continue to be an important part of the UK energy mix. A successful UK shale gas industry has the potential to create jobs and support UK energy security, benefiting the economy and taxpayers.

With the shale gas industry at an early stage of development, the Government believes that a targeted tax regime will help unlock investment. The use of field allowances to encourage investment in the North Sea has demonstrated the effectiveness of a targeted tax regime in stimulating investment and production that would not otherwise have gone ahead.

The Government will engage with companies to ensure that the final structure of the regime is appropriately targeted while maintaining a fair return for the Exchequer.